A liberal group today concluded its “18 Holes with Joe Coors” attack; Coors went after Democratic opponent Ed Perlmutter for supporting the stimulus package; and Perlmutter went after Coors for going to a Nuggets game instead of going after voters.

Joe Coors at the Denver Nuggets game Thursday night. (Provided by Perlmutter campaign)

It’s all part of the battle for the 7th Congressional District in Adams and Jefferson counties. Coors is trying to stop Perlmutter’s attempt at serving a fourth term.

Perlmutter’s campaign released photos showing Coors, his wife Gail, and their campaign spokeswoman, Michelle Yi, at courtside seats at the Nuggets game. Perlmutter spokeswoman Leslie Oliver pointed out that the congressman on Thursday was canvassing for votes in Commerce City with U.S. Rep. Xavier Becerra of Los Angeles. “While Joe sits courtside, Ed keeps working for our side,” she said.

Yi pointed the game didn’t start until 8 p.m. and Coors has been courting voters since he announced in January.

“Campaigning is hard, and candidates need to relax for an hour or two. Joe Coors likes basketball, and supports the Denver Nuggets,” she said. “It’s not as if he was pretending to be campaigning.”

That was a dig at Perlmutter’s campaign, which accidentally released footage on YouTube of Perlmutter. The footage showed staged knocks on doors, and revealed that a person who appeared to be an average voter in a Perlmutter video was actually his video director.

Joey Bunch has been a reporter for 28 years, including the last 12 at The Denver Post. For various newspapers he has covered the environment, water issues, politics, civil rights, sports and the casino industry.